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Prince hitting left-handers with consistency

Prince hitting left-handers with consistency

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DETROIT -- Prince Fielder's two hits off Jeff Francis Friday night pushed his average against left-handed pitchers on the year to .301 (28-for-93). He has hit more balls to left field off southpaws than pulled to right.

It's a facet of his game that isn't exactly big, but it's buying him some hits, and not just against infield shifts such as Friday's ground ball to third base that ended up as a double to left field.

"He hits it all over. I'm surprised, really," manager Jim Leyland said. "He hits from line to line, if you want to know the truth, which is kind of shocking."

Fielder is a .261 career hitter against left-handed pitching, 35 points under his average against righties. But then, his .317 average entering Saturday was 32 points above his career mark.